Jackson aide 'cashed cheques worth $1.5m'

One of Michael Jackson’s top aides cashed two cheques worth $1.5m in the weeks after his young accuser and family claim they were held captive and were to be whisked abroad, it emerged today.

As the prosecution’s case drew to a close, a bank manager told Santa Maria court, California that Marc Schaffel cashed the cheques from an account controlled only by himself and Jackson.